Darktrace AI’s Antigena helps stop ransomware attack at Dordogne GHT

French hospital group Dordogne Groupements Hospitaliers de Territoire (Dordogne GHT) has successfully contained and stopped a ransomware attack utilizing Darktrace AI’s autonomous response technology Antigena.

In 2021, Dordogne GHT installed Darktrace's artificial intelligence (AI)-based detect, respond technologies to guard against threats in all 11 of its hospitals, particularly for medical and corporate devices pertaining to accident and emergency departments.

The system was soon put to test when Dordogne GHT encountered a notorious ransomware strain called Ryuk, which targets critical public sectors organizations worldwide.

Russian cybercriminal group Wizard Spider has been attributed to creating the ransomware. Ryuk essentially combines advanced encryption techniques before requesting a high ransom for a private decryption key. Ryuk is also one of the first ransomware strains to encrypt network drives and resources.

Darktrace AI was alerted to the first signs of the attack via some basic .dat files being downloaded onto one of the hospital’s devices through an unknown IP address. Using AI, Darktrace’s Antigena thwarted the breach, saving medical devices from being corrupted.

"At a time when national cybersecurity agencies are urging organizations to be hyper-vigilant and lock down their systems, we can be in little doubt that defenders of healthcare systems will be working to keep the bad guys out," commented Justin Fier, VP of tactical risk and response at Darktrace.

"Autonomous response technology that uplifts human security teams by allowing them to make strategic decisions while the AI stops the attack before it causes disruption is critical in defending organizations vital to everyday life," added Fier.